Maggie Closes the Loop

Our track across the South Indian and Atlantic Oceans - each small sailboat represents one day. We can't explain the boat three thousand miles away in the Bay of Guinea off Africa showing up on our AIS!

Martinique sunset with Tevai in foreground

View of Ste Anne anchorage

A local youngster dressed for Carnival

One of many bands practicing for Carnival

Kiters on Saline Bay on north coast of Martinique

Carol, Tim and Patti on our nine mile hike! Most of it was much more scenic than this stretch!

                        Standing on dock in Le Marin where we left on the BPO - witgh a brand new BPO flag courtesy of Jimmy Cornell in Barbados

Ste. Anne, Martinique         

 Maggie Closes the Loop

Feb. 15, 2017

For Rob and I, being back in Martinique, feels like we have returned home after the circumnavigation. For the past week we have been anchored off the town of Ste. Anne, which is one of our favourite anchorages. Ste. Anne was the location of the starting line for the Blue Planet Odyssey just over two years ago, although earlier that morning we had left a slip in the marina at Le Marin, a couple of miles east of here. There must be about 200 boats here, a far cry from some of the anchorages during the trip. If you count the neighbouring Le Marin anchorages and marina there are over a 1000 sailboats. We are enjoying an extended stay and working on some much needed boat projects. Besides good boating stores, there is cheap and good French wine, bread, pate and cheese.

We can again listen to our weather forecasters on SSB. Dennis is still running his net. He is a retired meteorologist from Toronto, so many Canadian boaters check in with him. We can hear where some of the cruisers we have met previously are in their travels. On our second day here, Tevai pulled in and anchored beside us. Tim and Patti were the first cruising couple we met when we started down the Erie Canal from Canada. We have crossed paths a few times since. It has been fun to catch up with them while doing some things ashore.

That last passage from Barbados is one we are glad to have behind us. The autopilot worked for the first half hour, but not for the rest of the voyage. So it was another day and overnight of hand steering. But this time the wind and seas were higher and on the beam so it was hard work. It also rained a fair bit. When we motored out of Barbados, the engine was making some strange noises, and smelled like burning rubber when we turned it off. When ready to take down sails here, the motor wouldn't start at all. We managed to sail into the back of the bay off Ste. Anne and drop the anchor. We were happy that this is a harbour where that can be done without an engine.

The next morning we took a long, wet dinghy ride into town, and then the bus to Le Marin to check in and try to find an engine repair mechanic. The symptoms seemed similar to the last time the starter motor failed. We were lucky to find someone competent and willing to come out to the boat by dinghy. Despite its being their busy season, he arranged to come out the next morning. We raised the dinghy out of the water overnight, just to make sure it would be safe to use. In the morning, when Rob went to leave, the gas can and fuel line had been stolen from the dinghy. Rowing in was the only option. With the long distance and seas in the anchorage that day, I don't know if he would have made it in for the appointed time. But other cruisers came to the rescue, several times, and he got towed into the dock. Jean Paul, the mechanic, was still willing to come to the boat. They got another tow out. After a morning of work, we had a new starter motor, switch and relay installed. The engine is working now, and we have reanchored closer in. The next day, it was off to the shops again for supplies to get the dinghy motor back functional. All is well now. We are really pleased with how helpful people have been.

On the weekend we saw the first of many Carnival activities. There was a costume parade with 9 bands which was fun. This weekend there will be the king and queen crownings and more entertainment. We took a full days' hike from here through the countryside, east coast, and south beaches. Quite a variety of scenery. Yesterday we spent a day in the capital of Fort de France, sightseeing and shopping. Next stop will be St Lucia, where we have ordered a new dinghy and motor. We also hope to get the autopilot repaired there. We thought we could learn more about the problem with an English speaking repairman. We'll likely remain in Martinique for a few more days before heading down to St. Lucia. It feels nice to be back in cruising mode - staying in one place until we don't want to be there anymore!

While this will wrap up our blog related to the Blue Planet Odyssey, we will continue with periodic posts to allow anyone interested to follow where we are and what we are up to. We haul out in Grenada on April 18 so have some time to enjoy the islands before heading south.